Black Market – Melee Weapon Comparison

The third installment in our series looking at weapons in FFG’s Star Wars RPG takes a look at melee weapons.  After previously examining blaster pistols and blaster rifles, this time we move away from ranged weapons and look at the devices of choice for when combat gets up close and personal.

There are two distinct types of melee weapons – weapons that have a static base damage value and weapons that add a specific amount of damage to melee attacks. Weapons that add damage are using the character’s Brawn value as the base value, and then adding the additional damage on top of that. Since the Melee and Brawl skills themselves are both based on the Brawn characteristic, this doesn’t really make the distinction between the two that important. However, melee characters with a low Brawn rating are likely better served using a weapon that has a static base damage, while those with a high Brawn rating are usually better off using a weapon that adds damage.

Static Damage Weapons

Among Melee and Brawl weapons, there are far fewer that have a static damage than those that add damage. The most interesting of the group is certainly the Morgukai Cortosis Staff. Originally used by an ancient group that hunted Jedi and Sith, the cortosis material is resistant to lightsabers. Dealing 8 damage and with a Critical rating of only 1, it can certainly be a deadly weapon. However, its high price tag and extremely rare nature is going to put it out of reach for most players.

Two drilling devices which are meant more for industrial use than hand to hand combat are also on this list. Both the J-7B Beamdrill and G9-GP Pulse Drill can cause some serious damage if turned towards living beings. With a Breach 1 rating, they’ll eat right through the Soak rating of everything but the most hardened creatures and can even deal damage to armored vehicles.  The Cumbersome and Inaccurate qualities make them awkward to yield effectively, perhaps not making them the best choice in a hectic combat scenario.

Lightsaber has been included in the table below for the sake of completeness, but certainly will not be a weapon that is easily accessible to most characters. Limited to Force Sensitive (or Jedi) characters, the weapon as represented in this game certainly lives up to its legendary – and devastating – reputation.

Additional Damage Weapons

A character’s Brawn characteristic is going to be an important factor in determining how effective these weapons are. A character with 2 Brawn and a Vibro-ax (+3 damage) will be starting with a base damage of 5, while a character with 5 Brawn wielding the same weapon will start with a base damage of 8. It’s also worth mentioning that since the Brawl and Melee skills use Brawn as their base stat, a higher Brawn rating will make for a better dice pool.

Several of these weapons with the highest damage also have the Pierce quality, making them more effective by ignoring some of the target’s Soak rating.  The Gamorrean Ax referred to as the Arg’garok adds the most damage (+5) and also has Pierce 1 and Sunder, though the Inaccurate rating is a drawback and the Cumbersome 5 quality makes it less effective for characters with Brawn below 5. The Vibrosaw is hard for weaker characters to handle, with an identical Cumbersome 5 quality, and has Pierce 2, Sunder, and Vicious 2 to go with its +4 damage.

For characters who don’t quite have the Brawn or inclination to wield Cumbersome weapons, the Selonian Glaive is an interesting option. While its +3 damage and Pierce 3 gives it some impressive offensive  capability, it also provides a Defensive 1 quality to further protect those wielding it. Also providing some a Defensive 1 rating, the Tuskbeast Pike is not among these weapons with Pierce, but does add +4 damage and additionally can Knockdown opponents. However, the Pike only has 1 modification Hard Point, while the others on this list have 3 Hard Points each.

Lastly, for players looking for cheaper and more readily available weapons, the basic Vibro-ax  is a good choice. With +3 damage and Pierce 2, it can do some serious damage and the Critical Rating is only 2. It’s the Vicious 3 quality that makes this weapon truly dangerous, as multiple Critical Wounds caused by this weapon can become dangerous in a hurry. The Force Pike has identical Damage, Critical Rating, and Pierce 2 stats, and is also one of the rare Melee weapons with a Stun Setting.

Other Melee Items

Besides weapons, there are a handful of other items that use the Melee attack skill that allow for interesting combat tactics.  The Longeing and Neuronic Whips are both Melee weapons that can actually reach Short range. With the ability to Ensnare and Disorient, as well as dealing Stun Damage, these are designed for subduing targets without killing them.

For those looking for enhanced protection in highly dangerous situations, the Riot Shield is going to be one of the most defensively minded items in the game. With Defensive 2 and Deflection 2, anyone standing behind this shield will be well covered.

Finally, the Blast Knuckles take traditional brass knuckles and give them more than a little extra power. This Brawl weapon essentially houses a blaster pistol inside the knuckler mechanism, delivering a powerful (but somewhat unpredictable) blast to its target when it makes contact. While the +4 damage is impressive for a Brawl based item, the Inaccurate 1 rating makes the energy behind these a bit harder to contain.

Conclusion

Characters that focus on Melee combat have a good amount of weapon options to choose from. Several factors will come into play when choosing a weapon. A character’s Brawn rating could factor into the choice between a weapon with a static base damage or one that adds its damage to the Brawn value. Cost and Rarity are always a consideration when making a new purchase. The damage and special qualities will help determine how effective or deadly a particular weapon is. And, of course, personal preference is an important consideration as well.

The following two tabs change content below.

• Bio
• Latest Posts

Steve "Jaspor" Orr

Jaspor has been hooked on video games since he first played the old Gold Box D&D games on his Commodore 64. Since then, he's played games of all shapes and sizes, and enjoys writing about them. Jaspor has been a writer, editor, and occasional producer for several MMO related websites. He's also made periodic appearances on podcasts and videocasts, usually discussing video games. More recently, he's discovered the joy of table top RPGs and has been playing and GM'ing Star Wars Edge of the Empire games since October 2013. In a former life Jaspor played guitar in a punk rock band that sang about drinking beer.

Latest posts by Steve "Jaspor" Orr (see all)

• Shadow Over Tarkintown – A Star Wars RPG Rebels Beginner Game - May 11, 2016